This situation is rather outrageous. President Trump himself along with different media sources have referred to the disease as the “Chinese Virus”. I am going to be clear about this, a virus does not have a nationality, any person can contract it, which makes this affirmation highly racist. It is not just racist by itself but it is promoting racist attitudes to become systemic. Following different students that I have talked to, these are some of the expressions that have been heard all over the UK directed to seemingly Asian people: “we’ll be in trouble if these guys sneeze on us”, “actually, the risk of the virus spreading is minimal because Asian students are cliquey and unwilling to integrate”, “they deserved the virus because of their weird and unclean food habits”, “we better avoid Chinese restaurants and markets from now on to prevent the spread of the corona”. I personally wonder if people have started to avoid Italian Restaurants, Pizza Places and Spanish Tapas Restaurants from now on too.

 

 About the extreme right-wing representatives in Europe that have had the courage to relate this situation with the refugee crisis I would like them to visualize the following situation. Imagine for a moment that Coronavirus spreads uncontrollably all over Europe, while Africa, because of their climate conditions, remains mostly, virus-free. Frightened, European families would escape the disease hysterically, quickly on their way to the African frontier. They would try to cross the Gibraltar channel, they would jump into precarious embarkations from the Greek islands and the Turkish coast. Followed by the shadow of a new mortal plague they would try to remain alive and safe, urged by necessity. But once they would get to the African Frontier, the same fences that they established, the same violent controls and impregnable walls, would invert the power of the obstacle. The North African security and police forces would mercilessly shoot against the occidentals. They would yell at them: “we don´t want your disease, your misery, your necessity”. This cruelty could even be more extreme. Maybe some Europeans would reach African destinations guided by extortionary mafias, and right there, they would be locked down in inhospitable quarantines, where they would be divested of their belongings, assets, and most importantly, their dignity. 

 

I just find it amazing, how all these people that are taking by storm all the goods from the supermarket, would still criticize those who are running out of their countries because of a war.

 

I would like to remember the readers of the newspaper the important premise that: racism, has killed more people than any virus, ever. Bear that in mind. The denigration of certain populations is a common symptom of viral bursts. Disease, after all, fosters fear, which in turn fosters discrimination. In my opinion, we should all work together to fight that too.

 

From the InterContinental Team, we are asking you to stay home and think about this complex and extraordinary situation in calm.  After all, we must remember that this event has shown us plenty of things apart from devastating responses that only confront us, humans, against each other. We know now that reducing the O2 emissions and clear the air of our cities is not that hard. Besides, it is making us appreciate the public services as something essential, and the possibility of working and studying telematically. Most importantly, we are gaining awareness of our empathic and collective awareness to preserve life, which is something that must never be forgotten.